Occupational Therapist
Location: Heath Farm School, Ashford, Kent
Hours: 8.30am - 4.30pm, Monday- Friday
Position: Permanent, Term Time only
Salary: £41,000 depending on experience (Band 6-7 equivalent)
About the Group:
We are part of the Acorn Care and Education Group and can promise you plenty of challenges, and a rich variety of opportunities to develop your career.
Acorn Care and Education provide education and care across 20 schools and 19 residential care homes nationally. Our vision is to build incredible futures by empowering vulnerable young people in the UK to be happy and to make their way in the world. Every day we improve the lives of thousands of young people, their families and communities through a relentless focus on caring and learning.
About the Role:
The post-holder will be responsible for providing individual, specialist assessments and carrying out informed interventions to meet the occupational, physical and sensory needs of our children and young people at a universal, targeted and specialist level. This will include the provision of direct one-to-one sessions or group activities as part of the Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
The role will also involve the provision of advice, information and training to staff, other members of the clinical/wellbeing and multi-disciplinary teams, commissioners and other agencies regarding issues relevant to mental health and well-being, autism, learning difficulties, developmental trauma and associated conditions including children and young people who present with behaviours which challenge.
Multidisciplinary working is essential to Heath Farm School’s aim to provide a high-quality service that promotes the wellbeing and interests of the children and young people it supports. Collaborative working and integration of OT and therapy support within the day to day running of the provision is a key part of this role.
About the School:
It is an exciting time to join Heath Farm School. Under the leadership of the new, forward-thinking Headteacher, the school and its team are currently in the process of embedding a purposeful and unique ‘Heath Farm Curriculum’, launched in 2019 that fully meets the holistic needs of our students.
We are an independent SEN school that offers a unique and stimulating environment where every pupil is able to make outstanding progress in their personal development and enjoy success in their education.
Our students present with a wide range of needs, including social and emotional issues, learning difficulties, mental health problems and associated conditions. However they are able to enjoy extraordinary outcomes and be happy at school. All classes have excellent ratios of at least 2:1 students to adults. Typically classes have between 6-9 students.
As an independent SEN school we are far removed from the toxicity and bureaucracy found in so many other schools and we are able to abandon ineffective and traditional methods in favour of new, highly effective and tailored initiatives – essentially we do what we know is right for the students in our care.
Who we are looking for?
Above all else we are looking for someone with the right attitude and outlook on what education and therapeutic services should be about. Ultimately this is about an unconditional love and care for our students, a commitment to meeting their needs and providing them with the best education and care possible.
We’re looking for a committed, enthusiastic and forward thinking Occupational Therapist to join us; someone with a holistic and integrated approach to care, education and clinical services would be perfect for this role.
Why work for us?
- Opportunity to enrich the lives of young people and make a positive difference
- No two days are ever the same
- Supportive team environment
- "Your Wellbeing Matters"
- Employee Rewards Hub
- Pension
- Continuous professional development and training for a clear career path
- Access to an allocated budget assigned for continuous professional development and training
- Well-resourced provision
- Ongoing funded clinical supervision/Licence
- Be part of a growing national organisation
Applications are invited online https://www.outcomesfirstgroup.co.uk/vacancies/. If you have any further questions regarding how to apply or to arrange a visit please contact Jackie Yates, Assistant Head: Therapy by email at jyates@heathfarmschool.org.
The Outcomes First Group are committed to the safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults.
All successful applicants will be subject to fully Enhanced DBS and necessary checks.
We expect all our employees and volunteers to share this commitment and strive to achieve the best outcome possible for everybody in our care. A full application form must be completed with all employment dates accurate and gaps in employment accounted for